Robin Roy
Robin Roy is Professor of Design and Environment and Director of the Design Innovation Group.
Robin Roy joined the Faculty of Maths, Computing & Technology at the Open University in January 1971 as one of the first Lecturers in Design. Since then his research has focused on three interdisciplinary areas: creativity in invention and design; the economic and managerial aspects of product design and innovation; and design for the environment. In 1979, he founded the Design Innovation Group (DIG) to act as a focus for research on the management and practice of design and innovation in industry. Under his leadership, DIG has become an internationally known, multi-disciplinary group. Among the research carried out by the Group was a joint OU/UMIST project on the ‘Commercial Impacts of Design’. The findings of this research received national and international attention when published in 1991. Together with colleagues, Robin Roy completed in 1997 a long-term follow up study, funded by the Design Council. His recent research focuses the potential for major reductions in the environmental impacts of products and systems, in order to help avoid climate change.
Robin Roy has held several overseas visiting research and teaching appointments, including three at Australian universities and in the Netherlands at the UN Environment Programme, Group on Sustainable Product Development.
Contact Information
Email: r.roy@open.ac.uk
Telephone: +44 (0)1908 652944 (secretary) +44 (0)1908 655021 (personal)
Mobile: +44 (0)7714 407 919
Fax: +44 (0)1908 654052
Room: N2008 Venables Building, Faculty of Maths, Computing & Technology, The Open University, Milton Keynes MK7 6AA, UK
Selected Publications (2000-2008)
Roy, R., (2000) The long-term benefits of investing in new product development by SMEs, International Journal of New Product Development and Innovation Management, Vol. 1 No. 4, December/January, pp. 281-295.
Roy, R., (2000) Sustainable product-service systems, Futures, No. 32, pp. 289-299.
Roy, R. and Caird, S. (2001) Environmental actions to reduce household ecological footprints, International Journal of Environmental Education and Information, Vol. 20 No. 4, pp. 315-332.
Roy, R. and Caird, S. (2001) Household ecological footprints – moving towards sustainability, Town and Country Planning, Vol. 70, No. 10, October, pp. 277-279.
Herring, H. and Roy, R. (2002) Sustainable services, electronic education and the rebound effect, Environmental Impact Assessment Review (Special issue on Sustainability in the Information Society), Vol 22 No 5, October, pp. 525-542.
Crompton, S., Roy, R. and Caird, S. (2002) Household ecological footprinting for active distance learning and challenge of personal lifestyles, International Journal of Sustainability in Higher Education, Vol 3 No. 4, October, pp. 313-323.
Roy, R. Potter, S. and Yarrow, K. (Published 2004) Factoring sustainability into the higher education product-service system, Journal of Sustainable Product Design, No. 2, 2002, pp. 105-117.
Roy, R. and Caird, S. (2006) ‘Designing low & zero carbon products and systems – adoption, effective use and innovation’, In Proceedings Sustainable Innovation 06 international conference, Chicago 23-24 October, Centre for Sustainable Design, University of the Creative Arts, Farnham, UK, pp. 216-224.
Caird S. and Roy, R. (2006) Household ecological footprints - demographics and sustainability Journal of Environmental Assessment Policy and Management, Vol. 8 No. 4, December, pp.407-429.
Roy, R, Caird, S. and Potter, S. (2007) People Centred Eco-design: Consumer adoption and use of low and zero carbon products and systems, in Murphy, J. (ed.) Governing technology for sustainability, London: Earthscan, pp. 41-62 ISBN 978-1-84407-345-0.
Roy, R., Caird S., and Abelman, J. (2008) YIMBY generators. Yes in my back yard! UK householders pioneering microgeneration heat, The Energy Saving Trust, London, June.
Caird, S., Roy, R. and Herring, H. (2008) Improving the energy performance of UK households. Results from surveys of consumer adoption and use of low- and zero- carbon technologies, Energy Efficiency Vol 1: May pp.149–166 Published online:Springer Science + Business Media B.V. 2008 (Pdf)
Roy, R. and Caird, S. (2008) Design Improvements from users’ experiences of low and zero carbon technologies, Paper for special issue on Sustainability of International Journal of Performability Engineering, Vol. 4 No. 4, October, pp. 357-370.
Caird, S. and Roy, R. (2008) User-Centred Improvements to Energy Efficiency Products and Renewable Energy Systems: Research on Household Adoption and Use, Special issue on user-centred innovation, International Journal of Innovation Management, Vol. 12, No. 3 (September), pp.327-355 (Pdf)
Current Projects
2008 onwards: Heat pump monitoring and evaluation of user behaviour and technical performance of ground and air source heat pump installations in-situ, in homeowner and tenant households. The OU in collaboration with the Energy Saving Trust, is funded from the Higher Education Innovation Fund's UEA 'Carbon Connections' programme, with co-funding from industry, to conduct an investigation of the effects of user behaviour on the performance of domestic heat pumps and the carbon savings likely to be achieved by their widespread adoption.
2007-2008: Carbon saving through commercialisation of domestic micro-generation technologies. A six month scoping project with the Energy Saving Trust, funded via a £50k grant from the Higher Education Innovation Fund's UEA 'Carbon Connections' programme, to conduct preliminary technical and user evaluations of solar water heating, heat pumps and biomass stoves and boilers. The aim is a major follow-up project to conduct detailed technical and user evaluations of micro-generation systems and to transfer findings to industry.
Research team: Robin Roy, Sally Caird, Stephen Potter, Horace Herring, Derek Taylor.
2004 to 2006: People-centred eco-design: consumer adoption and use of low and zero carbon (LZC) products and systems. This project involves collaboration with Milton Keynes Energy Agency, the National Energy Foundation and the Carbon Trust to provide access to consumers who have adopted low and zero carbon products and systems, ranging from low energy lighting and heating controls to solar water heating and micro combined heat and power (micro-CHP) systems. The aim is to identify the factors influencing adoption and effective use of LZC products/systems plus technical/design improvements that would make them more acceptable and user-friendly.
Research team: Robin Roy, Sally Caird, Stephen Potter, Georgy Holden, Horace Herring.
See Sustainable Innovation 06 conference paper
2000 - 2005: Environmental impacts of higher education systems. This project is part of the 'Factor 10 Visions' programme on reducing the energy and resource consumption of personal transport, housing and higher education sectors by 90%, as required for long-term environmental sustainability. The HE sector study found that studying distance learning courses, via paper-based or electronic delivery systems, involved some 90% less energy and 85% fewer carbon emissions than taking conventional face to face courses.
Research team: Robin Roy, Stephen Potter, Karen Yarrow, Mark Smith.
See Final Report DIG-08 or http://www3.open.ac.uk/events/3/2005331_47403_o1.pdf.
2001-2005: Assessing and reducing the ecological footprints of UK households. This project gathered data from over 1000 Open University student households that had used EcoCal software to measure their household ecological footprint and to help generate and implement ideas for reducing their household's environmental impacts in the areas of transport, energy, waste, water and food. Researchers: Robin Roy, Sally Caird.
CV
Qualifications
B.Sc., First Class Honours, Mechanical Engineering, 1967,
M.Sc., Design Technology, 1968, Ph.D., Design Technology, 1971,
University of Manchester Institute of Science & Technology.
Employment
1999 to present. Professor of Design and Environment,
1981-99: Senior Lecturer in Design,
1971-81: Lecturer in Design,
Faculty of Technology, The Open University.
1970: Visiting Lecturer, State University of New York at Buffalo, USA.
1968-69 Engineering trainee, AEI, London; ASEA, Sweden.
Teaching
T172 Working with Our Environment (first presented 2000, major update 2006)
Author Theme 1 You and Your Environment and associated Supplementary and AV material (including EcoCal and National Home Energy Rating software support).
T183 Design and the Web (first presented 2002, updated 2003 and 2006)
Author on-line Lesson 7: Web site structure and navigation.
T211 Design and Designing (first presented 2004)
Author Block 3 Creativity and concept design and associated DVD multi-media materials.
T307 Innovation: designing for a sustainable future (first presented 2006)
Author Block 3 Products: new product development and sustainable design, and associated project support and DVD multi-media materials.
U1xx Environment (for presentation 2009)
Member of the team developing the interdisciplinary, introductory environmental studies course from the Faculties of Technology, Science, and Social Sciences.
Page Last Updated: 29 October 2008